Business News Round Up (06/05/2021)
UK PMIs: service sector grew at fastest rate since 2013 in April
The UK service sector grew at the fastest rate since 2013 in April as the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic continues apace.The UK Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for services rose to 61 in April, up from 56.3 in March. Any score above 50 indicates growth. It beat flash estimates of a reading of 60.1. The data is yet more evidence that the UK’s economic recovery from Covid-19 is proceeding quicker than expected. Job creation accelerated at the fastest rate since October 2015 last month, as firms took on more and more staff to handle the post-lockdown boom. Alongside the increase in activity, input prices rose at their fastest rate for four years, adding weight to economists’ concerns of increased inflation due to the rapid recovery. Later this morning the Bank of England will publish revised forecasts for the UK’s GDP growth this year, with policymakers expected to hike the rate of growth from 5.0% to 7.0%.
Scotland’s tech economy remains ‘resilient’ despite Covid challenges
Scotland’s tech sector has ‘remained resilient’, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and uncertainty following Brexit, according to a new study.A survey of Scotland’s tech economy, conducted by digital technologies trade body ScotlandIS, found that almost half of participants have increased their sales and profit margins over the past year. The ‘annual barometer’ for Scotland’s tech industry also shows that optimism about the year ahead remains very high, with 77 per cent of respondents saying they are ‘very optimistic’ about the next 12 months. Companies reported that the greatest opportunities for their business over the next 18 months were likely to be in data analytics (51%), artificial intelligence, machine learning (47%) and Internet of Things (27%). The study also found that international opportunities are at the forefront of growth plans for much of the sector, with 60% saying that this is something they already undertake. New markets, such as Australia and New Zealand, are reportedly coming to the fore as businesses adjust to Brexit.
No full-time return to the office for over a million
Almost all of 50 of the UK’s biggest employers questioned by the BBC have said they do not plan to bring staff back to the office full-time. Some 43 of the firms said they would embrace a mix of home and office working, with staff encouraged to work from home two to three days a week. Four firms said they were keeping the idea of hybrid working, working from home some of the time, under review. However, that is likely to change in June when the government hopes to end all social distancing restrictions. “We’re never going to go back to working the way we used to work,” said Mark Read, chief executive of advertising firm WPP. But the new ways of using the office require careful planning, he told the BBC. “People are working from home three to four days a week so we probably need 20% less space, but we’re not going to do that if everyone’s working from home on Mondays and Fridays.” Other companies cite “smart working” and “flexibility” as reasons for introducing hybrid working, with many suggesting that workers would be able to make their own choices about how often they come into the office.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56972207
UK business ready to speed up the digital transformation revolution
British business is set for a digital revolution according to a survey which indicates that 56 per cent of companies are speeding up plans because of the pandemic. With so many employees working from home, and a battle to get back on track after a year of turbulence, businesses are realising their processes and systems are potentially outdated and in need of an overhaul. The survey, commissioned by Crown Records Management, revealed: 32% are planning digital transformation in the next 12 months to cope with the new normal with 30% say allowing employees to work at home efficiently is now a key driver for digital transformation. The survey, undertaken by Censuswide, polled 401 decision makers at companies across the country with between 250 and 5000 employees.